Fall is an ideal time to grow vegetables that thrive in cool temperatures.
Vegetable crops can be classified into two basic categories – cool and warm season crops. What this means to you is that some plants thrive in the cool temperatures and short daylight hours of spring or fall and can survive light frosts, while others should be grown during the warmer, long days of summer.
If you are starting from seed, it is important to account for the number of days it will take for a plant to mature versus the first below freezing temperatures of the season.
For an example I will use broccoli , it will take about 55 ( the shortest amount of time) days before I can harvest them. The best way to know when to get these in the ground is to take your average frost date from above according to your zone and backup 55 days to plant them. However, this does not take into account the cooler and shorter days that need to be factored in. It would be better to come up with a date like the middle of September and back up from there. If you live in milder parts of the country such as the deep South or parts of California you can make this imaginary harvest date a little later. I use the days listed and add 7-10 days to that, to account for the shorter days and the cooler temperatures.

Estimated Frost Dates

Zone 3 – Sept 1st – 30th
Zone 4 – Sept 1st – 30th
Zone 5 – Sept 30th – Oct 30th
Zone 6 – Sept 30th – Oct 30th
Zone 7 – Oct 15th – Nov 15th
Zone 8 – Oct 30th – Nov 30th
Zone 9 – Nov 30th – Dec 30th
Zone 10 – Nov 30th – Dec 30th
Zone 11 – Frost Free

Another thing to keep in mind when planting your fall vegetables is that the seedlings require plenty of moisture. So keep them well watered until any rain that your area might have. Also, many of the leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale are heavy feeders so be generous with the vegetable safe fertilizer.
Dan & I like to grow certain cool season vegetables from seed, like arugula, spinach, and different types of lettuce that will germinate easily and mature quickly. Vegetables that are better started from seedlings (that are at least 6 weeks of age before transplanting outdoors) are broccoli, cabbage, kale and collard greens that you have prepared 4-6 weeks in advance. Transplants are an important issue for those who garden in the North where the fall season is shorter than those in the South. By using these seedlings (transplants) this will give you a head start. Look at our Planting Schedule at For more information.

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